brownshirt

American  

[broun-shurt] / ˈbraʊnˌʃɜrt /

noun

(often initial capital letter)

1. a Nazi.

2. a Nazi storm trooper.

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Etymology

Origin of brownshirt

1930–35; brown + shirt so called from the color of the shirt worn as part of the uniform

Example Sentences

He was supposed to be their very own Horst Wessel, the murdered brownshirt the Nazis used as a martyr to rally people to fascism.

From Salon • Oct. 1, 2025

He said the protest at the social affairs minister’s house had crossed a “red line,” harking back to the torch-lit Nazi brownshirt rallies of the 1930s.

From Washington Post • Jan. 30, 2022

The tide seemed to turn when 500 Stennes stormers permitted 100 loyal Hitlerites to eject them from brownshirt headquarters.

From Time Magazine Archive

The 1,000,000 steel helmet troopers, whom Adolf Hitler once barred from joining his Storm detachments, were told that they must join the brownshirt Storm Battalions and obey hereafter only Chancellor Hitler.

From Time Magazine Archive

But with 2,000,000 Nazis enrolled as brownshirt troopers. many of them armed, few Germans believed that any Hindenburg henchman would thus risk civil war.

From Time Magazine Archive